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 Documents, Tools and Resources
St. John's Landfill Gas Project
Innovation for a Cleaner Environment
The power of partnerships contributed to the success of the St. John's
landfill project in Portland, Oregon. Metro, a Portland regional planning
authority, joined forces with Portland Landfill Gas Joint Venture Partners,
a group comprised of Ash Grove Cement Company and Palmer Capital, to make
a first-of-its-kind landfill gas-to-energy project a reality. This innovative
project was named a 1998 LMOP Project of the Year.
Portland Landfill Gas Joint Venture Partners pipe landfill gas from
St. John's landfill to Ash Grove's Rivergate lime plant and use it as
a primary fuel source for three lime kilns, marking the first time landfill
gas has ever been used in this manner. Prior to completion of the St.
John's landfill project, the kilns were fueled by natural gas and recycled
fossil fuels. Utilizing landfill gas posed an opportunity for Kansas-based
Ash Grove Cement to lower utility costs and reduce emissions.
St. John's Landfill opened in 1940 and over the next 50 years 14 million
tons of refuse were deposited at the site. In 1991 the landfill closed,
leaving Metro responsible for methane collection and combustion. Until
Portland Landfill Gas Joint Venture Partners approached Metro, methane
generated by the landfill was collected and flared on site, allowing a
valuable, renewable energy source go to waste.
Through concerted efforts and contributions from all members of the
partnership, the St. John's landfill gas project came to fruition on March
20, 1998. Today, enough landfill gas is collected to be the sole power
source for Ash Grove Cement's three lime kilns. "It takes a lot of energy
to fire our kilns," said Gary Wright, Plant Manager, Ash Grove Cement,
"but the 17,000 therms/day produced by the St. John's project is enough
to power the kilns 24 hours a day. Landfill gas has proven to be a viable,
and reliable, source of energy for Ash Grove."
This project has put a valuable natural resource to good use, benefiting
the local and global environment. According to Mr. Wright, "Using landfill
gas to do beneficial work will save energy and reduce Ash Grove's air
emissions." In addition, Ash Grove Cement is enjoying a stable, competitively
priced fuel source.
Summary of Benefits
- Public and Private Entities Working Together
- Emissions Reductions
- Community Revenue Source
Lessons Learned
- Verify the quality and quantity of landfill gas
using an outside, independent service provider, to ensure that a project
will meet end user needs.
- Evaluate the consistency of the gas being generated.
Is gas generation susceptible to daily or seasonal fluctuations?
- If possible, perform in-house test runs to mimic
operating conditions using a low BTU fuel.
- Pay particular attention to engineering design
to match gas production to demand. Engineer solutions to address imbalances
between supply and demand.
- Know your gas supplier/operator and describe
responsibilities in detail.
What Is Landfill Gas?
Most of the waste we generate ends up in landfills,
where it decomposes and produces landfill gas. Landfill gas released
into the air smells bad, contributes to local smog, and is an explosion
hazard. Additionally, landfill gas is about 50 percent methane,
a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global climate change.
However, this methane is also a reliable and renewable fuel source
that, if not collected, goes to waste. |
The Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) is a voluntary program
that assists project developers, utilities, landfill owner/operators,
energy users, and communities to encourage new landfill gas-to-energy
projects. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has developed a variety
of tools (e.g., profiles, fact sheets, project development manuals, software,
etc.) to facilitate the development of landfill gas-to-energy projects.
Hundreds of landfills across the country are good candidates for a landfill
gas-to-energy project. To find out more, please contact LMOP.
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